Temple Beth Shalom’s Scholars Weekend with Dr. Leah Cassorla
June 2, 2023; Erev Shabbat:
Friday Evening: “Shmooze with the Rabbi” at 7:30 p.m.; Shabbat service at 8:00 p.m.: “Wandering Melodies:” As one of our alternative services, Dr. Cassorla will be our guest service leader using Sephardi and Mizrahi as well as Israeli melodies and nusach. As a preview to her Keynote Presentation on Sunday, Dr. Cassorla will also offer a short talk about the different types of Jewish Diaspora music, with a focus of the Sephardi influences in various Jewish prayer and home rituals.
June 3, 2023; Yom Shabbat:
Saturday Morning: Shabbat Service at 10:00 a.m. — ~11:30 a.m.; Study at ~11:40 a.m.: “Melodies of Jewish Migration:” Our abbreviated Yom Shabbat service will continue with Dr. Cassorla’s use of her interpretation of Sephardi nusach musical modalities and her special Shaliach Tzibur/service leading style. Following services, refreshments will be available as Dr. Cassorla offers a substantive talk on the history of the Sephardi and Mizrahi diaspora, tracing their unique expressions of Jewish ritual music within the history of repeated Jewish migrations throughout history. (RSVP appreciated, but not required.)
June 4, 2023; Keynote Presentation:
Sunday Afternoon: Beginning at 1:00 p.m.: “Melodies Across Place and Time:” Dr. Cassorla will present a two-part program (with a break in between) on Sephardi and Mizrahi music, beginning in the first session with some of the basics of romancas, cantas, and other home-based music, and continuing into some of the music of the more recent Sephardic revival. In the second half, Dr. Cassorla will discuss the different approaches to prayer and liturgical expression in Sephardi and Mizrahi communities, often seen through an historical lens. This program includes videos and slide presentations; no refreshments will be served. (RSVP appreciated, but not required.)
All services and programs for TBS’s Scholars Weekend with Dr. Leah Cassorla will be in person with masking and other requirements of our current COVID-19 policy found here (except for Shabbat morning refreshments) and will be broadcast via Zoom – we hope to enable some participation via Zoom, as well.
This program is sponsored in part by the Marguarite Solomon Fund.